View of the church in 1885. The wooden building on the left is the older church transported to here from the Hereford Street site
Oxford Terrace Baptist Church in 2008
The Christchurch Baptist church was founded in 1863 by 19 settlers from England. Decimus Dolamore, who was instrumental for establishing the Baptist faith in New Zealand, was the first minister.[1] The congregation first met in the town hall in High Street. In 1864, a church was built in Lichfield Street opposite where the Bus Exchange is located (as of 2011). The congregation split in 1867, but reunited in 1870 and built a church in Hereford Street.[1] The congregation decided to build larger premises and purchased land for £1,325 on the corner of Oxford Terrace and Madras Street, overlooking the Avon River.[2]
A design competition was won by local architect Edward J. Saunders. The congregation decided, though, that the total costs of the project was beyond their means. As an interim measure, the Hereford Street church was transported to the new site. Much public amusement was caused when the church sat on a wagon next to ChristChurch Cathedral for a weekend in 1879. Three weeks after arriving at the new site, the building was damaged by fire, but opened again some months later.[2] The older building was in use until 1903, when it once again caught fire.[3]
Tenders for the new church were called for in August 1881, but the prices submitted were too high, ranging from £3,956 to £5,337.[3] A revised tender in September 1881 received a quote of £3,130 by Morey and McHale, which was accepted. The Reverend C. Dallaston laid the foundation stone on 14 October 1881 and the project was completed and opened to the public on 9 July 1882. At that point, it was the largest Baptist church in the country.[2] An organ was imported from England and installed in 1915.[1]
The main building was significantly damaged in the 4 September 2010 earthquake[4] and collapsed in the subsequent 22 February 2011 earthquake. It was demolished in late June 2011 following further collapse in the 13 June 2011 earthquake.
Heritage listing
The building after the collapse on 22 February 2011
On 10 September 2004, the church was registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust as a Category II historic place, with the registration number being 1853. It is significant for its Neoclassical architecture, which is unusual for Christchurch. The church had the last remaining temple frontage in the city.[2]
Peter Beck, the dean of ChristChurch Cathedral, lists the Oxford Terrace Baptist Church as one of the "iconic churches of the city".[5]
Post-earthquake
185 Empty Chairs
The former site of the church of the church was used for a temporary art installation by Peter Majendie, unveiled at the first anniversary of the February 2011 earthquake. The installation, called Reflection of Loss of Lives, Livelihoods and Living in Neighbourhood, used 185 chairs all painted in white but of different shapes, reflecting the different personalities of those who died.[6] The artwork became known as 185 empty chairs. Within a year, the installation moved to a different site, and in 2017, discussions started to make the artwork permanent.[7]
In March 2016, The Press revealed that a modern replacement church had gained resource consent. The NZ$8.5m project will create a two-storey building with an auditorium for 250 people; NZ$1.5m has yet to be fund-raised. The church was reopened on Christmas Eve 2017.[8]
References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Old Oxford Terrace Baptist Church.
^ abcdWilson, Pam. "Oxford Terrace Baptist Church". New Zealand Historic Places Trust. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
^ ab"Baptist Church, Oxford Terrace, Christchurch". Christchurch City Libraries. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
^van Beynen, Martin (5 September 2010). "Quake devastates Christchurch's heritage". The Press. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
^van Beynen, Martin (8 March 2011). "Brit's $4m gift to cathedral earthquake fund". The Press. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
^"Installation represents victims' personalities". The Press. 23 February 2012. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
^Matthews, Philip (1 July 2017). "Remembering loss and thinking ahead". The Press. pp. C1–C2. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
^Lochhead, Ian (18 February 2020). "Church in the village". Architecture Now. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
January 11, 2023
oxford, terrace, baptist, church, located, christchurch, central, city, prominent, corner, property, fronting, avon, river, original, building, significantly, damaged, 2010, canterbury, earthquake, collapsed, subsequent, february, 2011, christchurch, earthquak. Oxford Terrace Baptist Church is located in the Christchurch Central City on a prominent corner property fronting the Avon River The original building was significantly damaged in the 2010 Canterbury earthquake and collapsed in the subsequent February 2011 Christchurch earthquake This building had a Category II listing by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust A new building was opened on Christmas Eve 2017 Oxford Terrace Baptist ChurchOxford Terrace Baptist Church in 2020Coordinates 43 31 38 S 172 38 35 E 43 5273 S 172 6430 E 43 5273 172 6430LocationChristchurch Central City ChristchurchCountryNew ZealandDenominationBaptistsWebsiteOfficial websiteHistoryStatusChurchArchitectureFunctional statusBuilding collapsedHeritage designationCategory IIDesignated10 September 2004Architect s Edward J SaundersArchitectural typeNeoclassical styleCompleted9 July 1882Construction cost 3 130Closed4 September 2010Demolished22 February 2011SpecificationsCapacity600 Contents 1 History 2 Heritage listing 3 Post earthquake 4 ReferencesHistory Edit View of the church in 1885 The wooden building on the left is the older church transported to here from the Hereford Street site Oxford Terrace Baptist Church in 2008 The Christchurch Baptist church was founded in 1863 by 19 settlers from England Decimus Dolamore who was instrumental for establishing the Baptist faith in New Zealand was the first minister 1 The congregation first met in the town hall in High Street In 1864 a church was built in Lichfield Street opposite where the Bus Exchange is located as of 2011 The congregation split in 1867 but reunited in 1870 and built a church in Hereford Street 1 The congregation decided to build larger premises and purchased land for 1 325 on the corner of Oxford Terrace and Madras Street overlooking the Avon River 2 A design competition was won by local architect Edward J Saunders The congregation decided though that the total costs of the project was beyond their means As an interim measure the Hereford Street church was transported to the new site Much public amusement was caused when the church sat on a wagon next to ChristChurch Cathedral for a weekend in 1879 Three weeks after arriving at the new site the building was damaged by fire but opened again some months later 2 The older building was in use until 1903 when it once again caught fire 3 View of the church after the 2010 Canterbury earthquake with props holding the frontage up Tenders for the new church were called for in August 1881 but the prices submitted were too high ranging from 3 956 to 5 337 3 A revised tender in September 1881 received a quote of 3 130 by Morey and McHale which was accepted The Reverend C Dallaston laid the foundation stone on 14 October 1881 and the project was completed and opened to the public on 9 July 1882 At that point it was the largest Baptist church in the country 2 An organ was imported from England and installed in 1915 1 The main building was significantly damaged in the 4 September 2010 earthquake 4 and collapsed in the subsequent 22 February 2011 earthquake It was demolished in late June 2011 following further collapse in the 13 June 2011 earthquake Heritage listing Edit The building after the collapse on 22 February 2011 On 10 September 2004 the church was registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust as a Category II historic place with the registration number being 1853 It is significant for its Neoclassical architecture which is unusual for Christchurch The church had the last remaining temple frontage in the city 2 Peter Beck the dean of ChristChurch Cathedral lists the Oxford Terrace Baptist Church as one of the iconic churches of the city 5 Post earthquake Edit 185 Empty Chairs The former site of the church of the church was used for a temporary art installation by Peter Majendie unveiled at the first anniversary of the February 2011 earthquake The installation called Reflection of Loss of Lives Livelihoods and Living in Neighbourhood used 185 chairs all painted in white but of different shapes reflecting the different personalities of those who died 6 The artwork became known as 185 empty chairs Within a year the installation moved to a different site and in 2017 discussions started to make the artwork permanent 7 In March 2016 The Press revealed that a modern replacement church had gained resource consent The NZ 8 5m project will create a two storey building with an auditorium for 250 people NZ 1 5m has yet to be fund raised The church was reopened on Christmas Eve 2017 8 References Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Old Oxford Terrace Baptist Church a b c About us Oxford Terrace Baptist Church Retrieved 19 March 2011 a b c d Wilson Pam Oxford Terrace Baptist Church New Zealand Historic Places Trust Retrieved 19 March 2011 a b Baptist Church Oxford Terrace Christchurch Christchurch City Libraries Retrieved 19 March 2011 van Beynen Martin 5 September 2010 Quake devastates Christchurch s heritage The Press Retrieved 19 March 2011 van Beynen Martin 8 March 2011 Brit s 4m gift to cathedral earthquake fund The Press Retrieved 19 March 2011 Installation represents victims personalities The Press 23 February 2012 Retrieved 2 March 2012 Matthews Philip 1 July 2017 Remembering loss and thinking ahead The Press pp C1 C2 Retrieved 4 July 2017 Lochhead Ian 18 February 2020 Church in the village Architecture Now Retrieved 4 August 2020 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Oxford Terrace Baptist Church amp oldid 1123487079, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
